[Commissar_Will]

Here are some pics of my Steathsuit Shas'vre, who is going to be part of a diorama as well as serve as a test for my Tau colour scheme. Other than a few little bits that need touching up (I've painted the bonding knife since this was taken) and the base, he's pretty much done. However, I really need suggestions on how to improve the shading. I'm going for the same look that Gareth used on his Stealthsuits, but in a different colour scheme. I did PM Gareth for advice, but I haven't got a reply, which I can understand as he's probably a busy guy. But anyway, the main thing I want to improve is the natural light highlighting. And Gareth, if you're out there, I could use some advice on the highlighing, especially as it's inspired by your models. Anyway, enough blathering, on with the pics!



Side - not happy with that bit at the top, just doesn't look right. Also shows simple source lighting on the FB.



I'm pretty happy with the simple source lighting on the lenses. And yes, he's facepalming - It'll be clear why when you see the diorama.



Back - good view of the shading on the legs. Backpack needs more work.



Front - bit blurry, but it's a good view of the shading there.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give!

[Bubgum]

Wow! They're great!!

I've only just realised how much cooler the Stealthsuits look without that little antenna on their head!

Great stuff, I love the shading! :P

[razgriz_cipher]

Omg that looks great. Good job detailing the fusion blaster.

[Gareth]

Sorry for the lack of reply on the pm. I think what you need to do is water your paints more so each layer is more opaque. The layers will blend better if you can see previous layers behind it. At the moment its looks like you're trying to blend with dry brushing.

The other important thing is don't jump too far between shades. Keep them subtle for matt effects. Military armour doesn't reflect light (gives away your position if it did). If it was shiny and reflective, then you'd go up to a brighter highlight.

Nasty mouldline on the fusion blaster. tut tut.

I'd remove the source lighting. Its not working. (You have blue on the top of the muzzle, which would be impossible, as the light can't shine round 90º corners).

Here is an example of where shading and highlighting should go (this is blended area highlighting, which is my personal preference. I hate tron-like extreme edge highlighting.)

[Gareth]

BTW, you got your sept markings wrong for au'taal. They should be scorpian green not yellow.

And here is a decent close up of one of mine. Its gaming standard like all my tau, but gives a good idea of putting theory into practice.

[Gatler]

Wait a minute; does that Shas'vre have three or four fingers?

I like the paintjob, myself. Scorpion green or not. Looks fine to me. Say they got sent the wrong paint. :P

[Nightmare]

Originally Posted by Gareth

BTW, you got your sept markings wrong for au'taal. They should be scorpian green not yellow.

And here is a decent close up of one of mine. Its gaming standard like all my tau, but gives a good idea of putting theory into practice.

Thats your gaming standard... bloody hell.

[Commissar_Will]

Thanks a ton for that Gareth, that's exactly what I needed. ;D I'll give up on the FB source lighting - I was going to remove the mould line and paint the top black anyway, but I don't think the overall effect is working quite as I planned. :-\ I'll study some photos of source lighting on FBs online before attempting it again. And both that diagram and the closeup are simply brilliant, incredibly useful reference for the blended edge highlighting I'm trying to acheive. As for the sept markings, thanks but I think I'll leave them yellow - not strictly true to the fluff, but they look good with the scheme I've got. Plus, to have Scorpion Green sept markings I'd have to change the entire scheme to make them stand out more. The yellow/dark green combo was what I always envisaged for Au'taal - I'll work out a fluff reason for the colour change later. I'll take all your great advice into consideration, and post up some more pics when I've corrected the paintjob.

Thanks to everyone for your encouraging comments. And Gareth, if I can ever paint minis as good as you "gaming" standard, then I will be a very happy man. ;D

[DELPHEUS]

Originally Posted by SILK

Thats your gaming standard... bloody hell.

Now you know why I both hate him and admire him. :P

[Stumphy]

Nice Job

I agree with Bubgum, the atennas are all coming off my suits now, it looks heaps better :-)

Good detailing on the gun and eyes, I think the backpack could use a little bit of cleaning up, but the overall scheme is good.

I like the pose, it gives him a nice sense of weight.